Urinary incontinence is a pathological condition which affects an increasing number of elderly people and is presently treated with anticholinergic-spasmolytic drugs. One of these drugs, which differentiates itself for a practical absence of anticholinergic effects, is 8-(2-(N-piperidino)ethoxycarbonyl)-3-methyl-4-oxo-2-phenyl-4H-1-benzopyran , the formula of which is: ##STR4## commonly known as flavoxate.
However, a problem associated with the use of this drug is its low stability in physiological fluids.
The compounds which are an object of this invention are also flavone derivatives essentially having methoxyphenyl-substituted complex amino functions in place of the piperidino group present in the flavoxate structure. Another structural variation of the compounds which are an object of the present invention involves substitutions of the ethoxycarbonyl group which separates the amino moiety from the benzopyran ring. Surprisingly, the compounds of the invention were found to have a powerful antispasmodic action and, also, to be considerably more stable at a physiological pH than flavoxate, so that their half-lives are considerably longer than that of flavoxate. Therefore, these properties make their use as long-lasting antispasmodic drugs indicated, particularly with respect to the treatment of lower urinary tract disorders, without, however, limiting their therapeutic use to this field.